For this month’s Visual Writing Prompt, take a gander at this photo. It is rife with questions that gnaw at the brain. Who is the woman? Who is the child? What are they thinking? Where are they going? Where are they coming from? Are they abandoning their trailer? And perhaps most ominously, what do those looming clouds represent?

What just happened? What will happen next? What would you like to happen next? What do you fear most?

If you come up with some answers, or perhaps just more questions, or better yet an actual story idea, feel free to post it in the comments below. Or, just keep it for yourself and keep writing!

This month’s musical writing prompt comes from the Wolfman soundtrack. No, not the original black and white one, but the one that came out a few years back. The soundtrack is by Danny Elfman and it is quite good. We highly recommend it, if you are into soundtracks.

So click play and give it a listen. Let the creative juices flow and try to write something. If you feel like sharing, you can do so below in the comments. We would love to read your reactions to the prompts and feature the best of the best, when we can. Whatever the case, we hope this month’s track gets you going.

For our first Visual Writing Prompt, we have this intriguing photo from Felix Russell-Saw. So take a long look at it, and consider the possibilities of what in the world is happening in this photo. Let it guide you somewhere. To a story, to a character, to something.​And if you feel like sharing with the community, post your little story from the prompt in the comments below. We will feature the best of the best and possibly publish an anthology of prompt responses some day.

But enough about that, look. Stare. Gander. And let the creative juices flow.

With these prompts we won't be providing you with a visual or words or themes, simply a song. One song to listen to and let your mind wonder, meditate. Let the music guide you to a story you might not have thought of otherwise, or build on one you already know.

If you do come up with something, please write it below in the comments and share with the rest of the community. Especially, because we will be featuring the best ones on the site and maybe even publish some of the really fantastic ones.

But for now, just click play and listen to John Carpenter's song Night from his "Lost Themes" album.

Your inner editor is that voice in your head that tells you when you’ve made a typo, or written an awkward sentence, etc. A strong inner editor is not a bad thing, most of the time.

When you’ve written your first draft you can let that strong inner editor loose on your work and hopefully avoid humiliation when you first hand your draft to another reader. If you have a weak inner editor you should get as much outside help as possible.​

“when you’ve written your first draft..."

​Notice I said “when you’ve written your first draft.”

While you’re writing that draft, your inner editor is not your friend.

When you write a first draft, the goal isn’t to produce a masterpiece, it is to get the story out of your head and on paper/in a file. If your inner editor freaks out every time you get a visit from the Department of Redundancy Department (DoRD) or screams at you that you’ve spelled your main character’s name three different ways, it can really slow you down.

Thus, the trick is to suppress the inner editor during this time.

The Inner Editor Personified

What I (and many writers) have found helpful is to imagine the inner editor as a person (of sorts) and then imagine that you’ve locked them in the cellar or chained them up in the yard or some such.

My inner editor resembles Mike Wazowski from Monster’s Inc. When I write something he doesn’t like there is a lot of panicked arm waving and jumping around and hysterical (and often sarcastic) commentary. When I sit down to write a first draft, I chain him to the grapefruit tree in the back yard, way over by the back fence. I can still hear him if he’s really freaking out, but for the fiddly stuff, it’s not too hard to ignore him.

​My daughter’s first inner editor looked like a stern school teacher (made sense, she was a kid). When she was preparing to try NaNo for the first time, she drew a picture of her editor and gave it to me for safe keeping while she wrote.

NaNoWriMo suggests that a writer go to something of an extreme with this and never backspace to correct anything. I, personally, can’t go that far. First of all, I’d have to retrain myself in a way that wouldn’t be helpful with general communication. I touch type and often correct a typo before my eyes have even had a chance to focus on it. I just know I missed the key I was going for and I automatically fix it.

In essence, I will allow myself to stop and fix things that have a quick and obvious solution. If I typed “brown” when I meant to type “brawn”, it’s really better that I fix it right away while I can still remember what I meant to say. If I find myself pausing for more than about a minute, I may make a note to myself in the text like “[CAN WE FIND ANOTHER WORD FOR THIS, HMMM?]” (my notes to myself are always in ALL CAPS) and move on. Or I might just let it go until editing.

You are not Alone

It is a bit! Lol, it's always an adventure when the book is 1st starting! □ I'm also trying not to edit more than once a week for #NaNoWriMo

​What does your inner editor look like? What do you do with it when you need it to shut up and let you write? How do you cope with your inner editor? Feel free to sound off and share in the comments below.

My name is Philip Neale and I am a UK author. The main focus of my writing, under the pseudonym ‘Neal James’, is crime fiction. I am an accountant by trade, and use spreadsheets constantly in that line of business. It was therefore quite a small step to transpose that skill into the structuring of my writing.

I usually begin with a fairly basic plan of writing forty chapters of a novel containing 1,500 words each. This, I find, provides me with a fairly easy template with which to plan a story. I never get fixated on the fact that 40 x 1,500 = 60,000 words, and the novel plan rarely ends up in so simplistic a form.

​Let me give you an example. Here is the basic layout of my latest novel, ‘Three Little Maids’, when I commenced the planning stage of the book.

Figure 1.

You can see that the ‘Wordcount’ and ‘Pages’ columns are blank in Figure 1. I will populate these with actual data, and can therefore see how the novel is progressing towards its total as I write it.

​Now look at the same spreadsheet when the novel is complete (Figure 2):

Figure 2.

Now completed, the Target columns have changed to match the progress made on that particular part of the writing. By comparing it to the Wordcount column, I can express a shortfall or overage figure for the chapter. Now, by applying an estimate of 300 words per page, I can get some feel, in the Pages column, of the likely length of the book, in this case 247 pages. This is only a basic guide, but the actual number of pages in the finished novel was 266 so I wasn’t too far out. ​Another feature of the use of Excel is the ability it gives me to keep a check on the accuracy of some of my writing. Consider the sheet below (Figure 3):

Figure 3.

I needed to know, for the purposes of eliminating all but possible perpetrators of a murder, all those not on school premises at the time that the music teacher met his death. This analysis, along with other data, ensured that all of my numbers tied out, and that no loose ends were left lying around.

With simple tools such as these, I can monitor the progress and sense of the book as it nears its conclusion. I can also, by reviewing the spreadsheets, change the focus of the book as it is written to come to any one of a number of conclusions. ‘Three Little Maids’ had a number of possible killers in its pages, and I didn’t decide until very late in the writing which of those individuals were to become responsible for the death of the teacher. Then it was a simple case of a little rewriting to give me the finish I desired.

As an example of something really complex, Figure 4 is a small section of the plot plan for ‘Two Little Dicky Birds:

Figure 4.

The colour coding was designed to ensure that I kept track of who was doing what, where, and with whom. The novel has multiple plot lines, and it would have been impossible, without such a schematic, to keep it in a logical sequence.​​Here is another section from the same sheet (Figure 5):

Figure 5.

The novel concerned a number of murder in the UK over the period 1975 – 2002, and it was important to keep the names of the victims and their locations at the forefront of mind at all times. The gaps mentioned in the sequence provided vital gaps in the novel for police activity to be focused.This ‘wordcount’ concept goes to the root of all of my writing as a means of keeping a tight control over what I write. Simply revisiting it each time I start a new session of a book allows me to slip seamlessly back into the plot and carry on from where I left off.However, merely using a spreadsheet to write a book is not enough. This is just the bare bones of the structure. For a more detailed ‘plan’ of what I intend to do, I expand on the Excel tool with a Word document which goes into much more detail chapter by chapter. I can then decide, in a block of about 500 words, what I am going to write about in a particular scene much in the same way a TV script writer will draft out a drama series.Using ‘Three Little Maids’ as an example again, consider the following rough outline (in gold) which I drafted at the start of the book:

Conclusion

I begin with a list of characters, and this could be expanded or contracted as the book develops. Names may or may not change as I write the book – real readers actually ask to be included – so some of the final names will not be as they are here.Now I develop a chapter-by-chapter plan and will allocate a number of words to each bullet point (they are not listed here) to give me a rough guide as to how I am progressing. This keeps me in a logical sequence of events and prevents me straying from the main story line.Inevitably, some of these guide notes will not make it into the final manuscript, but may resurface at the editing stage where my editor feels that extra text should be developed. I then have my original notes to fall back on.In conclusion, I find Excel and Word essential tools for a structured novel. There is other software available which claims to fit the needs of aspiring authors, but my accountant’s training has always steered me in the direction of the simplest solution. I remain to be convinced that there are better options out there.​

What about you, dear writer? Do you use Microsoft Excel or Word to outline your novel? Do you use something else to structure and organize your novel? Still a noob and not sure how you want to outline a novel? Are you a rebel who doesn't believe in outlines? Whatever the case, sound off in the comments and let us know about your process (or lack thereof).

​Balancing being a human and being a writer is quite a difficult task, especially when it isn’t one’s career or greatest source of income. For me, one of the hardest aspects of making time for writing is that I see it as a hobby; often, I feel pressured to take care of every necessary task before picking up my pen. And sometimes, unfortunately, when I get everything done that needs doing(just kidding—is this even possible?) or I put some things off to make time for writing, I find I can’t write. I can’t tell you how frustrating this is when I have as much passion for it as I do. Writer’s block is not something I’m proud to admit I face. Maybe because I think it’s weak? Or because it isn’t talked about as much in my circle of writing friends? Whatever the reason, I’ve accepted it as a real issue that needs to be dealt with.

Over the years that I’ve struggled with this phenomenon, I’ve developed some skills and techniques of working through it. They’re not bullet-proof, and I don’t use the same method every time, but it’s definitely helped me overcome it and get something on the page.

Use writing prompts

The internet is your friend. Seriously. There are hundreds of platforms out there that provide different types of writing prompts. Some will generate a first line for you to use. Some give you an entire situation. My favorite, though, are the three-element prompts. They’ll give you three random words to incorporate into a story.

Example: clock, dolphin, brother. ​In some way, you use those three items to create characters, a setting, and a problem, and take it from there. Maybe you don’t even need all three items to get the words flowing. After all, the goal is to get you writing, so if you’re struck with an idea after the first word or two—whatever the prompt might be—go for it!

Change your environment ​

A large reason I struggle with this issue is because I try to write at the dining room table when I can see the dishwasher needs to be loaded. Or I write on the couch while the television is staring at me. Or I write at my desk, which is just so cluttered, I feel as though I should organize it. In situations like these, the only solutions are to either abandon writing altogether and complete the task at hand or leave that work space and go to the library or a coffee shop. Abandoning the distracting work space allows my work to become the center of my focus.

Eliminating distractions is a key way to actually producing words.

Take a break ​

Sometimes the more I try to figure something out, the harder it is for me to actually reach that solution. Writing is no different. If I find myself getting frustrated by my lack of writing, I’ll literally leave it and do something else for a while. It really helps me to take a step away; whether that’s by taking a walk, doing a quick chore, or even doing a few pushups(to be really sure that my mind is not on my writing AND I get some frustration out). I choose the task I do wisely—something that has a clear end to it. I avoid watching TV because I could always just watch another episode. I avoid taking a nap because who knows how long I’d sleep(or if I release my frustration enough to actually sleep). The most important part for me personally is that I must—MUST—get back to writing that same day. This obviously isn’t always feasible. Life has its obligations for us. But my result is always a thousand times better if I sit back down, pick up my pen, and dig up more effort within an hour or two of my break. Even if I only get one word down on the page, it’s something. And taking the time to try keeps it in my head more. There’s a much higher chance that I’ll sit and try again the next day—and usually with success—if I give it more than one go.

Watch people ​

This one might be my favorite. Especially for creative-minded people, this can be fun to explore. There’s only so much a person can tell about someone just from their appearance or behavior, so filling in the blanks with whatever made-up story comes to your mind can be quite thrilling. If you see a man in his late thirties wearing a dark suit at a coffee shop, it’s up to you if your character based on him will be a lawyer heading to meet a client or a son who just buried his father. The choice is yours, and I think that’s a great way to get those creative juices flowing.

Be mindful ​

In a way similar to the people watching, being aware to what goes on around you can be a perfect way to brainstorm story ideas. For example, just a few weeks ago, I was sitting at my table writing while my lunch cooked in the oven. My mind was everywhere, and I could not for the life of me settle on a situation for a short story. Suddenly, my oven made a loud pop! and—after verifying that nothing was going to blow up—I was thrust into an idea in which the oven contained a bomb and this guy blew up his house. Weird connection, but there is the connection. And thus, a short story was born.

Read something ​

As many great writers have said, reading other works is an amazing way to achieve success, gain ideas, and expand vocabulary. Generally, I personally prefer some distance in genre from what I’m currently working on. If I’m writing a memoir, I will read either fiction or non-creative nonfiction. If I’m working on a thriller or mystery, I will read a coming-of-age story or romance. That way in my mind I’m not comparing my work with that of what I’m reading. The more different the reading material, the fresher my eyes will be when I sit back down to write.

Journal or change topics ​

A little self-discovery never hurt anyone, right? Journaling is powerful. It can be as simple as writing about the day you had at work or a dream of yours. Whatever the topic is that gets the words flowing from your head to your fingers is success in my book. If writing about yourself doesn’t suit your fancy, how about switching up your genre? If fantasy/sci-fi is your go-to, try to write a romance story. Or try poetry—even if you think you’re terrible like I do. Even if you never tell or show anyone what you’ve written, you’ve still used your writing skills to produce something.

Conclusion

I wish I could tell you the one sure-fire way to avoid writer’s block. Sadly, that one thing does not exist that I have found. Rather, I hope I’ve given you a few ideas of how to cope and overcome this struggle that so many writers face. Plus, I know it was helpful to me knowing that I wasn’t the only one who experienced this issue. Writers write, right? Sometimes it’s hard to convince yourself it’s worth the effort of getting through, but trust me it is. Good luck and keep writing!

There is no right or wrong way to develop names for your characters. But sometimes it can be difficult to just magically come up with names that just work for your characters and perfectly fit them.

We've put together a short list of some possibilities for developing names. Hopefully these are ideas you’ve not thought of yet, and you can find a new treasure trove of names you’ve not thought of by the end of reading this post. Be sure to share with us ways you find helpful in the comments we may not have thought of sharing. ​

​#5 Pop Culture References

One method for coming up with names is by snatching them from culture references. Historical, musical, celebrity, literary, whatevs. I often will use culture references as a nod to works or artists who have influenced me or the work in some way. A way of dedication or simple thank you for their work.

Here are a few ways I’ve used cultural references in my works:

Mercedes. My private detective character is named after the character of the same name in Alexader Dumas’ classic tale The Count of Monte Cristo, which happens to be one of my favorite books of all time.

Jo. This one is kind of funny, because it bit me for neglecting the work I was referencing. I named a character in a short film Jo, after Hitchcock’s young heroine in the film Shadow of a Doubt. A year or so later, I re-watched the movie after years of not seeing it only to discover her name was actually Charlie. I felt stupid. But I still stand by the name.

The Rolling Stone. I have a couple of short stories with an anti-hero named The Rolling Stone, named after the band. In these stories, all of the characters are references to other works(mostly musical ones). There’s a Hawn the Hammer(Hawn after Goldie Hawn), Tiger Lilly(after the Peter Pan character), Dr. Hook(after band Dr. Hook), Wicked Annabelle(after a song by the same name by The Kinks), Teen Wolf(after the Michael J. Fox film of same name), and so on.

Ulysses. I recently wrote a TV pilot with a protagonist named Ulysses, after the American historical figure Ulysses S. Grant. He was a General during the Civil War who later became President of the United States, for those who may not know.

My references tend to be more obscure, like naming a doctor after a psychologist from the early 1920’s most people won’t recognize. But the beauty of using subtle references like these is that they become little Easter eggs and trivia for your works. Things people will find fascinating long after they’ve put down your book.

#4 BABY NAMES

I don’t know if you know this or not, being a writer and shut off from the world, but there are gobs of people out there who aren’t writers naming babies ALL THE TIME. They aren’t very creative, not like you, so there are websites and books in print with nothing but potential baby names. These baby name websites and books can be your playground as well. I’ll admit, I’ve found them useful from time-to-time, especially the websites that allow you to filter names by origins. This can help in picking appropriate names for someone with an Italian background, or Greek, and so on.

In our book GUN, I used Greek names for several characters and places. These I picked up from a website for baby names, which allowed me to browse by Greek and alphabetical order(I’m a sucker for the letters M, C, and B with names).

Baby names websites will often include filters for specific gender, gender neutral, origins, nationality, time period when they were popular(helpful when writing an older character or something period), and so on. Just perform a search for“baby names” and find your favorite site for narrowing it down, or shop for a book that fits your needs. ​

#3 Just Make‘Em Up

Here’s a thought… just make those names up. If you’re a fantasy writer, this may be useful. But it’s certainly not easy. If I’m making up a name, I will often find a word or name I like, and then tweak it until it still has the impact I liked about it but different for the story. But honestly, I don’t make names up as often. I rarely work in fantasy, but when I do, I usually use really ancient names. Obscure Bible names, ancient Greek names, Babylonian names, etc. Or sometimes, at least use those references as starting points to create something similar, but different. ​

#2 Street Names

Using street names is a new thing for me, but I’ve been enjoying it. The nice thing about street names is that they’re everywhere and can often be used for both characters or places. I recently came into this idea by discovering a neighborhood near where I live that uses two names in the street names. For example, Perry Cate. That’s the name of an actual street. Each street sounds like someone’s first and middle name. Another neighborhood I found intriguing was one where all of the street names are French words or names.

Here’s how I’ve been putting those streets to work for me:

Perry Cate is now the name of a major protagonist in my crime novella series. She’s a young journalist.

Renoir is the name of a mysterious character in my novella series. Can’t say much more than that without major spoilers.

I’ve also used some street names for naming parks, streets, and neighborhoods in my fictional city of Babylon where my novella series takes place.

What about you? Consider the names of the streets in your neighborhood, or the one with all the people you can’t stand that’s a few blocks away—would some of those names be useful as places or people in your story?

#1 Names from Tombstones

Probably my number one favorite way to find unique names is by getting them off really old tombstones. The best way to do this is to, of course, go to an old cemetery and walk amongst the oldest tombstones and find some wonderful names from times gone by. Of course, be respectful, these are real people and likely with living family. Do not use full names. That’s disrespectful. But if it helps you find a first name or last name you would have never thought of on your own, that’s good. But again, be respectful.

I also have a short book written by someone who liked going to old cemeteries like myself, and they wrote down a comprehensive list of names for babies that were old and unique. It’s a good, little book. Just something I happened to spot at the end of the line at a local grocery store. ​

​Conclusion

Names are everywhere. EVERYWHERE. So just look around you, or even use your own memories to conjure up names from your past. A street you lived on, a neighbor you knew. Names are literally everywhere, even in your own subconscious. ​

NOTE. This is an early draft of Nathan Weaver's Sweet Sixteen Killer novella, the first in a series of books following the cases of private detective Mercedes Masterson. Please let us know what you think of this early look of the story in the comments below. ​

Emily Fuller had been trying to find an opportune time to interject into the dinner conversation and ask her mom, Janet, if she could sleepover with her friend, Amy Matthews, the upcoming weekend. But it became clear after thirty minutes of her parents complaining about their respective jobs that it just wasn’t going to happen. So she interrupted her mom during what appeared to be a breath.

“Mom, is it OK if I go hangout with Amy this weekend?” She asked.

Janet looked at her suspiciously.“An overnighter?”

“Yeah.” Emily replied.

“No.” Janet said bluntly without reason.

“Why not?” Emily asked.“We don’t have anything going on.”

“I just don’t want you spending too much time out all night.” Janet said.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Emily asked.

“I know how you two are, you leave the house and go out in all times of the night, doing who knows what.” Janet said.“Her parents are useless and don’t keep track of you two, and I don’t wanna see you get hurt.”

“Come on what, dad?” Emily shouted.“Mom’s over here accusing me and my best friend of hooking or slutting around, and you’re just sitting there with your tail between your legs.”

Bradley recoiled.

“What do you do, then?” Janet asked.

“None of your goddamn business, mom!”

“Don’t use the Lord’s name in vain,” Janet chided.

“Screw you.” Emily said and jumped out of her chair.“Is that better?” She raised both of her middle fingers and waved them around in the air.“Not everyone is a slut like you were in high school.” She stormed out of the room as Janet yelled back at her and demanded her to come back and listen to her. Emily slammed her bedroom door, sending crashing sounds and vibrations reverberating throughout the whole house. She grabbed her backpack from her bed and tossed it to the floor. She flopped on her bed and began to text Amy.

[EMILY] moms a witch. wont let me come over this weekend. so pissed.

[AMY] what is with your mom? whats up her butthole anyway?

[EMILY] she was super slut in high school so thinks i am too. like all i want is dick, dick, dick all the time. bite me.

[AMY] ok. tmi.

[EMILY] bite me.

[AMY] not my style. gots to go. homework.

Emily smiled at the innuendo from her friend. She needed that little reminder that not everyone or everything was against her all the time. The teenage years had not been stacking up to be the best years of her life.​

[EMILY] ;) laters

​Emily leaned over the side of her bed and rummaged through the pockets on the outside of her backpack. She found her earbuds and put them in. She pulled up some Fiona Apple on her phone and turned it up. She had homework from Mrs. Lincoln's geometry class, but it would have to wait. She needed to decompress after another shootout with her mom.

After a few songs, her eyelids began to grow heavy. By track seven she was fast asleep.

She woke with a jump and tried to open her mouth, but her lips wouldn't separate. She felt her mouth with her hands and discovered duct tape had sealed her lips shut. Before she could remove it or react, a man dressed in black and a ski mask straddled her torso and arms, limiting her movements. He gripped his left palm across the duct tape on her mouth while he repeatedly stabbed her abdomen beneath him. She struggled to be released from his grasp, but she could only wiggle under his weight. The pain was unrelenting. Sharp pain, followed by sharp pain. She didn't have time to account for each wound before the next came.

Her tears fell.

She grew more exhausted with each blow and from her own thrashing under his weight. Her breathing became labored. He had punctured her lung and it filled up with blood. It was only a matter of time.

Fiona Apple continued to sing in her ears.

When Emily felt she could no longer move or resist, he completed his assault on her body. He placed the knife on her nightstand. He leaned into her face and they met eye-to-eye. He watched her eyes as he unzipped and unbuttoned her jeans. He continued to stare into her eyes as he forced her pants down to her ankles. He removed her pants and underwear over her feet, and then stood beside her bed. He slowly panned her legs with his gaze.

Emily noticed he had an erection through his pants. She knew he was going to rape her. But she was too wounded, too crippled, and more than halfway gone. She wanted to scream or bang on the wall, but even blinking felt like a chore. Her mind was flooding with all the people she'd never see again and she started to cry.

He began to stroke himself before climbing on top of her again. He reached for the knife and brought it to him. He spread her legs and made his final assault on Emily using the knife.

After he was finished, after all the damage had been done, he neatly reviewed the area around her bed to make sure he didn't leave behind any incriminating evidence. When he had completed his sweep of the crime scene, he looked at her a final time. One last chance to take his work in. To breathe the smell of a fresh kill.

And just before he left, he whispered,“Happy birthday.”

After he left, she opened her eyes. He had taken her for dead during his final assault. She painfully and slowly peeled back enough duct tape so she could call for help. She could only let out a whimper, nothing audible enough for her parents to hear in their bedroom.

Emily wanted to run to her parents. Scream for help. Anything. She slowly reached about her bed with her hands, trying to find something to help. Something that could help remove the pain. That's when she realized Fiona Apple was still singing in her ear. Only a single song had passed since waking. She was on track eight.

She followed the earbud cable through the blankets, sheets, and blood. She found her phone. It was wet with blood, but it lit up nonetheless. She could tell she was about to pass out, and she figured it would be her last sleep. The big one.

Using the cable of the earbuds she pulled the phone closer to herself. She got it as far as her hip, and had to stop. She was giving out. She spoke as loud as she could.

“Hey, Cortana.”

The music stopped and she heard a sound that indicated her personal assistant was listening.

“Text Mom,'I love you.'”

“OK,” Cortana spoke back to her through her earbuds.“Here's what I have,'Text Mom, I love you.' Would you like to send it, or would you like to try again?”

“Send.” Emily said.

“Your message has been sent.” Cortana replied.

Emily sighed a breath of relief as she closed her eyes and welcomed death.